Beautiful Chrysocolla and Malachite Polished Stones
A large and highly polished malachite and chrysocolla stone weighing almost 500 grams.
Both malachite and chrysocolla (in its purest form) are very soft minerals. Chrysocolla is frequently associated with quartz, malachite, azurite and cuprite as well as other minerals. When combined with quartz the hardness can improve but it's always a good idea to handle stones carefully.
References to a mineral called chrysocolla can be found in writings by the Ancient Greek philosopher Theophrastus. It's believed however the name did not refer solely to the stone known today as chrysocolla. Spelt 'chrysokolla', it's believed to have applied to several copper minerals including malachite.
Theophrastus wrote it can found in large quantities in gold mines and even more in copper mines. He also says chrysokolla occurs in 'kyanos' which in Greek means "blue copper carbonate”, a geological description of the mineral azurite. This confirms that malachite was part of the group of minerals referred to as chrysokolla.
